Basic Measurements
Force that pushes electrons through a circuit.
Voltage
Unit for Voltage
Volt
Electricity source in a standalone circuit
Battery
Material that doesn't allow current to flow through it
Insulator
Type of circuit that only has 1 path for current to flow through.
Series Circuit
The rate at which electrons flow through the circuit.
Current
Unit for Power
Watt
Component used to smooth out bumps in current
Capacitor
Material that allows current to flow through it easily
Type of circuit that has branches that current can flow through at the same time.
Parallel Circuit
Resistance.
Unit for Resistance
Ohm
Component used to measure the current flow in a circuit
Ammeter
Material that is designed to slow down or oppose current flow
Resistor
What are the three most common factors that affect the capacitance of a capacitor?
The gap between the conductive layers (more = less capacitance)
The material the plates are made of and the material used to fill in the gap (varies based on material)
The surface area of the two plates (more = more capacitance)
The total amount of electricity that a circuit uses.
Wattage
Unit for Current
Ampere or Amp
Component that converts electricity into motion
Material that has no resistance in specific conditions
Superconductor
Why putting capacitors in parallel is better than putting capacitors in series, if you want more capacitance.
Putting multiple capacitors in series is equivalent to a single capacitor with the total gap of all the capacitors combined, which means a lot less capacitance. Putting multiple capacitors in parallel is equivalent to a single capacitor with the total plate size of all the capacitors combined, which is a lot more capacitance than the individual capacitors.
How much electric charge a capacitor can store.
Capacitance
Unit for Capacitance
Farad
Component that converts electricity into light
lightbulb, LED
A material that loses resistance when its temperature rises
Semiconductor
Ohm's Law
V=IR
Voltage = Current * Resistance